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The article from Sen. Dave Argall concerning his and all the legislators’ efforts to continue trying to reduce property taxes reminds me of the days in my service business when a customer called because his walk-in freezer was defrosting with $21,000 worth of merchandise in it. I said I would make every effort to get there and told him that every day I would be increasing my effort to solve his problem. Suffice to say, I lost a customer forever.

If only the citizens of Pennsylvania could do that when legislators fail to perform. I would surmise that performance levels at the state level would vastly improve.

I ran my own survey on property taxes. I asked 43 property owners, “If I reduced your property taxes by one-half and raised the sales tax to 7 percent, would you vote for it?” Forty-two said yes, while one did not know. With that standard, property owners would find relief and then the total population would pick up the other half — a consumption tax borne by all citizens of the state to fund school taxes. It makes the most sense.

While I was at it, I checked the state of California, which has 36 million people — three times the size of Pennsylvania. It has 110 legislators versus the 253 that Pennsylvania has — keeping our title as the largest, most bloated and most expensive legislature in the nation.

Let’s talk about some other concerns: Each legislator’s salary is $85,000 per year, in addition to gold-plated health care, platinum retirement after very few years, per diem expense accounts and wasteful district offices. Then add the recent gas tax increase, making us the highest gas tax in the nation, and the Delaware loophole, which keeps millions of tax dollars from our treasury. There’s a right-to-work law, which is the single biggest roadblock to companies locating in Pennsylvania, and let’s not forget school consolidation of 500 districts, and then taxing internet sales and cigars.

Add corruption, with Kane, McCaffery, Eakin, Acosta, McCord, Perzel, DeWeese and ending with Jane Orie and her sister, Joan — not to mention a $1 billion-plus pension deficit and being the only state in the union with two highway departments. Mandate that counties eliminate tax collectors and computerize all in courthouses. Last but not least, term limits. Two terms maximum is the only salvation to prevent special interests and money from interfering with proper governance of the state.

Thomas Edison said that discontent is the first necessity of progress. The citizens of the commonwealth are rightly discontented. As a citizen, I hope that our legislators will stop partisan bickering, recriminations, apportionment of blame and work to mold our fabric of society to put the interest of citizens first and foremost. I know all our legislators personally. They are all good solid citizens, but have a much less-than-stellar performance as legislators. I hope 2017 brings changes that will lift us up from the dark ages.

If you don’t lead by example, you will never be a leader. Let’s show the citizens what good leadership entails.

H.J. Fenstermacher Pottsville

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